Xanthine oxidase is a peroxynitrite synthase: newlyidentified roles for a very old enzyme

Xanthine oxidase (XO) was first identified in 1902 by the German scientist Schardinger in bovine milk by following the hydroxylation of hypoxanthine to xanthine. Following this first discovery, the history of xanthine oxidase has followed the usual routes of investigation such as they were at the start of the 20th century. The electron donors and acceptors were identified and the constituents of the active sites were deduced. It turns out to be a classic, multicentred, redox enzyme.&more...